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If time permits, you could take the HE out and then handle the zinc. I too had the same issue when I got my engine (used). I took the HE off and then got the zinc out. When I did get the zinc out, only the head of the bolt came off and the rest remained inside. I had to drill and tap the same, clean the HE out and then replaced with a new zinc. Note when you do drill and tap, be very careful, the matrial you are drilling out is zinc, that is very soft. In my case I kind of tapped it with a bit of gusto. So when I replace the zinc, it would leak a bit. However, just tightening it a bit more dd the job. Just FYI.

David,

By any chance do you have a water strainer between the thru hull and the water pump? If so, that could be another item that could be leaking air in resulting in your loss of 'prime'. Just a thought that came to mind when I was trying to picture your situation.

David,

Somehow it sounds like we have not solved your root cause. Please post what you find today. It is very interesting that you have problems after few hours of sail. Just out of curiosity, have you tried turning on the engine at intervals while you are sailing just to check if things work properly? Just a thought.

Steve,

In my opinion that is a pretty good price. If it is the correct part you should grab it. I should check out this website. Thanks for pointing us to it.

Steve,

The Kubota part number 15231-63010 shown in the D950 parts manual on c34 website has been replaced by 15231-63015 (according to my information). The tractorsmart.com website shows the price as $332.30. You can use that price to negotiate the discount with your local Kubota dealer...

The Kubota manual is the basic D950 engine that all M25s are based on.  The last one is the M25 owners manual downloaded from the Universal Deisel site.

Ken,

A quite comment. The M25XP uses the D950 block. Whereas the older M25 used the D850 block. I have a D850 parts list. Let me know if you need one to post for everyone to use. Cheers.

Rick,

On the throttle side the bigger bolt with the hex head (if I remember correctly), is the friction screw. If the screw is all the way on and is not changing the friction, I have a feeling that the screw has broken through the teflon material and therefore is not pressing on the teflon which in turn is not pressing on the control lever shaft. You may be able to check this by removing the screw fully and looking in the hole. If the teflon is completely broken off you will see the SS shaft. If the teflon is intact, you will see white material. You may also be able to measure the depth and hence the length of the screw required. This in fact may explain your chronic problem.

The teflon inserts are available easily from Edson. Your local chandlery could order it from Edson.

Hope that helps. Lets us know what you find. Cheers.

Does anyone have a used asymmeterical spinaker? I sail short handed and a radial that I have is not the best for short handed sailing.

Rick,

The Edson Engine Control Assy install and maintenance instructions can be found at:

http://www.c34.org/wiki/images/8/86/EngineControl.pdf

The page I pasted above is page 7 of the same. This document is a good read. Fortunately for you, you are only adjusting the friction screw. Installing the cables is another thing...

Go ahead and check you clutch cable after detaching it from the Tx. You will be able to find whether it is a cable issue, routing issue, transmission issue, or something else. Given that it is a chronic issue, most likely your cable is either short(er) or not routed properly.

Cheers.

Rick,

So your throttle issue is as I had guessed and is easy to fix. It will need tightening of the friction bolt inside the engine control assembly as per the document I attached. I have a feeling Ron's suggestion is also the same. To do this you will need to remove the compass and tighten the screw as shown in the picture. You can actually check and tighten to reach the stiffness you want. If you tighten more the forward motion of the lever will also be affected. My recommendation is to tighten just enough that the throttle lever stays put when you move it forward. Let us know if you need more detailed instructions and we can help. However removing the compass is pretty straight forward. Just be careful removing the compass light. while removing my compass I dropped my light bulb into the pedestal and had to get a new light assembly. I would just take the light with the cables and tape them out of the way till you are ready to put it back.

You will need to investigate the clutch lever and let us know what you find. Accordingly we can advise.

Regards,

Mahendra

Rick,

It would be good to know if you have kind of always had these problems or something has changed recently.

In my experience the stiffness could be caused due to couple of reasons:

1. The cable is not long enough and is making a sharper turn at some point than it should. This can make the movement in the cable stiff. First you need to check if this is the case. If you can, remove the clevis pin connecting the clevis to the transmission but keep the cable in place if you can. Then move the handles at the pedestal to see if the cable is still stiff. If it is smooth you don't have issues with the cable but there is something to do with the TX. If it is stiff you have some issues with the cable since at no load (no TX connection) the lever should move easily. Also try and see if you can route the cable physically so that the loop it makes is a large as possible. That will help. Or, change the cable with a longer one to allow for a larger loop before terminating at the TX. It very seldom is the problem with a jammed cable but it can happen. In which case the remedy is a bit more work intensive as removing the cable from the pedestal assembly is a bear at best. Post a message with your findings and we can help you along.

2. I must say I don't clearly understand your throttle problem. Are you saying that the throttle is working just moves back to lower rpm just as it does in our car when we remove the foot from the pedal? Note that at the engine end of the throttle cable there is a spring inside the control plate where the throttle cable connects. Technically that spring is supposed to do just what you are describing is happening. If that is what you are saying is happening, but there is no play, i.e. nothing happening when you move the lever, then there is an easier fix. There is a screw that needs to be tightened on the inside of the engine control assembly (the assembly that is just beneath your compass an that holds the control handles). Please confirm the issue you are having and I can help you with the remedy. All it needs is tightening of the screw/bolt and you are done. This will require removal of the compass which is quite simple. I can help you with step by step instructions and perhaps some pictures. In the meantime I am attaching page 7 of the Edson instructions that will give you some idea about the issue you are having with the throttle.

Please post you findings and we can help you along. Regards.

I wonder how would the Balmar 100 Amp alternator (with regulator) compare with the 90 AMP Model 8MR2069TA, ($199) Alternator Karista has mentioned. For 10% less Amps (on paper) it seems to be a great price...Hopefully someone has experience with both to tell us.

Terry,

I checked out the picture on Mains Sail's website that you may have seen. You may be correct, however, knowing Maine Sail, I am sure he has a expansion tank somewhere and the hose that seems to go down is then led back and up to a tank placed at a convenient location. Ron has explained the benefits of the tank quite eloquently.

Hi Terry,

Go with Stu's suggestion on placement of the expansion tank. My picture was for illustrative purpose since it is of the M25 I just installed in my Pearson 10M. As Stu will agree, I am blessed with a good amount of room around the engine... I am sure once you have the expansion tank you will find a place for it. I am kind of surprised that you don't haven't ever seen any coolant in the pan below. When the engine heats up and the coolant expands the cap allows the excess coolant to pass to the expansion tank -- in your case the pan at the bottom. When the engine cools down the cap then allows the coolant from the expansion tank to come in and replenish the quantity in the manifold --- in your case it would allow air to come in. That is how I remember the cap working....

Are you sure it is the overfill hose that you are looking at that goes down to the pan under your engine? Or is it the breather hose from the top of the crankcase you are looking at? I saw an M25 once where they had just blocked off the opening at the manifold that would go to the expansion tank. In this case the engine works without the expansion tank. This setup also works, I think, one just has to keep checking the level in the manifold by opening the cap rather than look at the level in the expansion tank. The later is obviously easier. Please don't be offended by my question. Just checking...

Terry,

Interesting setup by the PO, eh? So do you see coolant in the pan under the engine where the line coming from the cap drains into? When the coolant expands and overflows it would go to the pan in your case, leaving a partially filled exhaust manifold when engine cools down.

The fix is quite simple. You can go get a Universal Coolant Expansion tank from any local Auto shop such as Kragen, Napa Auto parts etc. Some of them come with a metal mounting bracket some with holes in the plastic for mounting purposes. Mount the tank in a accessible place. Keep the bottom of the expansion tank at or above the level of the connection at the exhaust manifold. Connect with a suitable size high temperature capable marine hose with clamps on both sides and you are done. Keep the tank filled to the marked line and the see through wall will allow for easy viewing of the level of the coolant in the expansion tank. Just for your reference. below are links to units similar to the one I bought :

http://www.kragen.com/ProductDetail.aspx?MfrCode=DOR&MfrPartNumber=91662&CategoryCode=3052
http://www.kragen.com/ProductDetail.aspx?MfrCode=DOR&MfrPartNumber=603001&CategoryCode=3052

Attached is a picture from my installation where you can see the coolant expansion tank. Hope it helps.